The present invention generally relates to pedal powered vehicles, more particularly to a side-by-side, multi-rider recumbent vehicle, the manufacture/assembly thereof, and, apparatus for quickly and efficiently joining parallelly paired recumbent bicycles so as to form the subject multi-rider recumbent vehicle.
Heretofore, many pedal powered vehicles have been produced to accommodate multiple riders. One such vehicle is known commonly as a tandem bicycle, wherein one rider sits in front of another rider, each rider having pedals for powering the vehicle, the front rider being provided with a handlebar adpated to steer the vehicle. The shortcomings of this arrangement are well know, being summarized in U.S. Pat. No. 5,342,074 issued to Amdahl et al. and others.
A favored configuration for pedal powered vehicles capable of carrying more than one person is dual side-by-side (i.e., parallel arrangement). Bicycles so configured, whether they comprise conjoined individual frames or a xe2x80x9csinglexe2x80x9d frame designed exclusively for such purposes, provide a more stable vehicle, in contrast to the tandem, enjoyable by those who lack confidence in their sense of balance, or who, for other reasons (e.g., handicap, age, infirmity, etc.), are not able to ride a standard bicycle. Furthermore, side-by-side arrangements can be useful for certain types of physically challenged individuals who may require supervision and/or assistance, so that vehicles so arranged can serve a rehabilitation function. Aside from the known benefits accruing from the side-by-side configuration, the sociability afforded by such a configuration makes such vehicles fun to ride, and highly desirable.
Up-right side-by-side vehicles, and/or the many devices produced for connecting a pair of up-right bicycles together in a side-by-side relationship, are known to have numerous drawbacks. While the balance and general stability of these vehicles is much greater than a bicycle, the center of gravity for these vehicles is rather high since the riders sit upright upon a saddle. This fact greatly contributes to greater stresses being placed on the cross bracing, components which, more often than not, are permanent, or, if nothing else, difficult and cumbersome to remove so as to separate the bicycles of the vehicle so that each may be used independently.
Whereas most of today""s bicycles are of a conventional sit-up design, numerous attempts have been made to introduce recumbent bicycle designs. The recumbent bicycle is generally longer than a conventional sit-up bicycle, positioning a rider lower with respect to the ground, and is generally characterized by the rider sitting slightly reclined in a high-backed seat. The recumbent bicycle provides increased comfort, greater pedal efficiency, and a lower center of gravity when compared to the conventional sit-up bicycle. At present, single rider recumbent bicycles styles are generally characterized by their wheel base length: long wheel base (65-71xe2x80x3); short wheel base (33-45xe2x80x3); and, compact long wheel base (46-64xe2x80x3), with each style offering specific handling characteristics consistent with its frame configuration.
Although the benefits accruing to recumbent bicycles are likewise realized in a paired union of recumbent bicycles, there remains obstacles not unique to such vehicles. For instance, difficulty remains in achieving easy, effective steering of bicycles connected to form a side-by-side pedal powered vehicle. Some such vehicles do not couple the steering systems for each of the independent bicycles, making a great deal of cooperation between the two riders necessary so as to safely direct and otherwise maneuver the vehicle. Although the use of tie-rods and other coupling mechanisms are known to join the handlebars together so that either rider can steer both bicycles when they are joined as a unit, responsiveness has been less than optimal, with such coupling assemblies often times being extreme in a mechanical sense: overly simple, offering only minimal effectiveness, or very complex, making separability of the individual bicycles for independent use a labor intensive task, better suited for the shop, not the trail head.
Further still, in use, the bicycles of known side-by-side multi-rider vehicles are separately subject to a variety of ground obstacles (e.g., speed bumps, pot holes, rocks, sticks, etc.), which result in the application and distribution of disproportionate torquing forces to components of the vehicle, as well as the vehicle in its entirety. An individual bike of the pair may similarly strike an object such as a curb, and the other not, their momentum producing a raking force which tries to carry one bicycle ahead farther than the other. Some or all of such forces may be encountered in random combination, thereby diminishing the structural integrity of the side-by-side vehicle, particularly the bracing structures thereof.
A recumbent vehicle, the manufacture thereof, and apparatus for forming same, is provided. The recumbent vehicle generally includes a pair of recumbent bicycles (i.e., companion bicycles), each of which preferably but not necessarily has a suspension assembly for at least partially suspending a ground engaging wheel thereof, interconnected in side-by-side relation. The frame of the recumbent bicycles are structurally joined using a bracing assembly having a pair of cross braces which link the frames in forward and rearward positions so as to constrain the companion bicycles in six degrees of motion: pitch, roll, yaw, lateral side to side, lateral for and aft, and lateral up and down. The companion bicycles are further united in a functional way by a steering coupling assembly to produce an Ackermann geometrically correct steering mechanism for the recumbent vehicle.